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American Long Rifle
During the Revolutionary war, the American long-rifle was the weapon of choice among marksmen, “elite” and experienced militia, and even several brigades of rebels. The rifle saw combat in the civil war as well, but less of a factor due it’s wide popularity by that time period and the fact that the battles were fought in a very different manner. The weapon itself was actually developed on the American frontier, it was always hand made with receivers, rifling, and triggers chosen by its makers. This was a massive bonus during the era because mass produced parts were not yet available, so, it some part of the weapon broke, it could repaired by the hunter or soldier with ease. This process also allowed the users to “bond” with the weapons and take more pride in them than the average soldier or hunter. Virtually everyone who used a long rifle was an expert shot. First Hand Accounts "On Friday evening last arrived here, on their way to the American Camp, Captain Cresap's Company of Riflemen, consisting of 130 active, brave young fellows, many of whom had been in the late expedition under Lord Dunmore against the Indians. They bear in their bodies visible marks of their prowess, and show scars and wounds... two brothers in the company took a piece of board, five inches broad and seven inches long, with a bit of white paper about the size of a dollar nailed in the center, and while one of them supported this board perpendicularly between his knees, the other at a distance of upwards of sixty yards and without any kind of a rest, shot eight bullets successively through the board, and spared his brother's thighs....the spectators, amazed at these feats, were told that there were upwards of fifty persons in the company who could do the same thing; that there was not one who could not plug 19 bullets out of 20 within an inch of the head of a ten-penny nail..." 1. {August 28th} Cresap was the proud leader of one regiment outfitted with these weapons. Another account, The Loyalist Bradford brothers, Philadelphia printers, wrote the following story which appeared in the London Chronicle on August 17, 1775: "This province has raised 1,000 riflemen, the worst of whom will put a ball into a man's head at a distance of 150 or 200 yards, therefore advise your officers who shall hereafter come out to America to settle their affairs in England before their departure". 1 These marksmen had grown up hunting, built their own weapons, and practiced with them practically everyday. They lived by their rifles, it’s how they ate and how they played and how they worked. Men with a passion like that are not to be trifled with. Basic History The Long Rifle's origin is considered the frontier. All that is currently known is that it began popping up in Pennsylvania in the early 1700’s. It became the go to weapon for those needing a rifle. Every good hunter, marksman, and sniper used a long rifle, so many used it that there are still arguments today as to what the name was or should be. It was not until the mid 19th century, when mass production and newer technologies became available that the rifle started to disapear. Hand building weaponry became a forgotten tradition and only those who passed the knowledge on from generation to generation continued to build them. Many families continued to build them until around the twentieth century. The world wars interrupted their production because there was just no time or resources to build such a weapon. However, the knowledge of the process survived and there are still collectors and enthusiasts building and/or maintaining such rifles today. The rifle design is older than the United States, a true testament to its rugged origins. 4 3 6 Use During the Revolution While there is not enough evidence to piece this together, it is almost guaranteed that this weapon was present at every battle during the revolution. Daniel Morgan, Timothy Murhpy, and the 11th rifle regiment. Timothy shot and killed General Fraser, at the extreme distance of 300 yards. It took him 3 shots, the 1st one a miss, the second grazing Fraser’s horse, and the third hitting him in the stomach. His fourth shot hit and killed Sir Francis Clerke, the aide-de-camp of General Burgoyne.8 Timothy Murphy did this using the age old American Long Rifle. During the battle of Saratoga, he was apart of General Daniel Morgan’s hand picked rifle regiment. Morgan and his men would snipe from the outskirts of the battlefield, using native american tactics such as camouflage and tree climbing. At the time this was considered unconventional, but the extra height gave the long rifles even more range, and the camouflage made them invisible when shooting from further than 100 yards.10 Morgan and his men would often attack officers instead of infantry, usually incurring less than ten deaths per battle. During the second battle of Saratoga, Morgan lost 4 men while Gates lost 320. The Long Rifle ushered in a new type of warfare, instead of using as many shots as possible to kill your target, use as few as possible. Accuracy and precision don’t often define early military tactics, making Morgan and his riflemen ahead of their time. 10 9 8 Bibliography 1CLINE, WALTER M.; The Muzzle Loading Rifle; Standard Printing and Publishing Co., Huntington, WV, 1942. 2HOGG, IAN V. and BATCHELOR, JOHN H.; Armies of the American Revolution, Prentice-Hall Inc. Englewood Cliffs, NJ, 1975. 3DILLON, JOHN D. W.; The Kentucky Rifle, Ludlum & Beebe, New York, NY, 1946. 4KETCHUM, RICHARD M.; The Revolution, The American Heritage Publishing Co. New York, NY, 1958. 5 LOSSING, B. J.; Pictorial Field Book of the Revolution, Harper & Brothers, New York NY, 1850. 6PETERSON, HAROLD L.; The Treasury of the Gun, The Ridge Press, Inc., New York. NY, 1962. 7WINSOR, JUSTIN; The American Revolution; Land's End Press, New York, NY, 1972 8"Timothy Murphy: Frontier Rifleman". New York State Military Museum and Veterans Research Center. 9Gregory Mast; Hans Halberstadt (January 2007). To Be a Military Sniper. Zenith Imprint. p. 18. 10 Alexander Rose (21 October 2008). American Rifle: A Biography. New York: Random House Publishing Group. p. 46.